Colleagues, school board members and even the mayor of Cle Elum, Wash., describe Kalispell Public Schools superintendent finalist Mark Flatau as a man of integrity who leads by example and empowers others to excel.

Flatau’s virtues likely were reiterated last week by the Cle Elum community when Kalispell school board trustees Joe Brenneman and Jack Fallon visited the Cle Elum-Roslyn School District where Flatau has been superintendent for nine years.

The local trustees spent Wednesday and Thursday in Cle Elum learning more about their top candidate for the Kalispell superintendent job.

A special school board meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Kalispell Middle School Library to further discuss hiring Flatau and offering him a contract to succeed retiring Kalispell Superintendent Darlene Schottle.

Cle Elum-Roslyn School District Board Chairwoman DeAnna Winchester said Flatau consistently leads by example at all levels.

Winchester has served on the school board since 2001.

“In general Mark leads by example and that’s always from school board to the little kiddos in kindergarten,” Winchester said.

Winchester said she has felt well-informed before making board decisions.

“If we had questions or concerns, he was right on top of it, getting the answers to us,” Winchester said. “I can’t even say enough good things. He leads the district in a way that’s very forward-thinking — looking at future needs as well as maintaining what we have.”

Mutual respect and fairness were traits of Flatau cited by Kelly Clifton, president of Cle Elum-Roslyn Education Association and a third-grade teacher.

“Mark always tried to be fair. Even though we didn’t always see things from the same point of view, we worked collaboratively for the kids,” Clifton said about the teacher negotiation process. “He usually came up with very fair policies and compromises if there was a disagreement with something.”

An open-door policy made it easy to have open and frank conversations and present policies or new ideas, according to Clifton.

Lara Gregorich-Bennett, principal at Walter Strom Middle School, echoed the sentiment. This is Gregorich-Bennett’s first year in the district.

“I was debating whether or not to apply because it would be a big move for my family. I called him [Flatau] and he is the reason I applied. I’m sad to see him go. He’s amazing,” Gregorich-Bennett said with a touch of emotion in her voice.

“He really believes in the power of education,” she added.

Gregorich-Bennett said Flatau is a strong advocate for education.

“He really helps the community understand what it is we are doing here,” she said.

Flatau has a zest for engaging with the community as much as he does within schools.

“I want the community to know who I am and attach a face to a name,” Flatau said.

Charles Glondo, mayor for the city of Cle Elum, said Flatau was very visible in the community and easy to work with. Glondo has been Cle Elum’s mayor for 11 years.

“There’s not one bad thing to say about him,” Glondo said. “I’m deeply saddened that he’s going.”

Flatau, 58, worked in North Mason School District before assuming the superintendent job in Cle Elum-Roslyn School District.

It was in North Mason where he was given more leadership responsibilities and moved up from teacher and basketball coach to assistant superintendent over a span of 24 years. As a teacher, Flatau taught multiple subjects in fifth grade, then seventh grade and eventually high school biology.

“I had people believe in me,” he said.

Learning is a lifelong skill, according to Flatau, who describes himself as a “lead learner.

“We all have to be learners, whether we’re the superintendent, on the board of trustees, a principal or teacher,” Flatau said. “We have to demonstrate to kids that learning is a life-long endeavor. It’s hard, but it’s fun.”

The future of education is how well students engage in their learning, Flatau said.

“We have to ask three questions: What do we want our students to know and be able to do? How are we going to demonstrate how they learned it and what are we going to do if they don’t learn it?” Flatau said.

The position with the Kalispell school district would afford Flatau experience in a larger school district.

The Cle Elum-Roslyn district operates on a $9 million budget with an enrollment of about 950 students. Kalispell Public Schools’ enrollment is about 5,800 students with a $56 million budget.

Several awards were earned under Flatau’s leadership at Cle Elum-Roslyn. Cle Elum-Roslyn High School was named a “School of Distinction” by the Center for Educational Effectiveness in 2007 and 2013. Cle Elum-Roslyn Elementary and Walter Strom Middle School also were named Schools of Distinction in 2008.

In 2011, the high school received a Washington Achievement Award for extended graduation rate. In 2009 Flatau earned the Washington State Outstanding Administrator Award for Environmental and Sustainability Education.

Although he grew up in Washington, Flatau and his wife, Gayle — who grew up on a wheat farm in Havre — have visited the Flathead Valley for the past 35 years.

“We’ve seen the growth over a 35-year span,” Flatau said. “Our kids spent more of their summers in Montana than they did in Washington.”

The Flatau children include Melissa Speer, a high school English teacher  in Oahu, Hawaii; and Philip Flatau, a U.S. Air Force flight surgeon for a special tactics squadron based at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington who is currently serving in Afghanistan.

Five grandchildren round out the family.

Flatau sought the superintendent position to live closer to family in Kalispell, Missoula and Havre.

“My mother-in-law [Francis Baltrusch] is a proud Flathead graduate,” Flatau said. He added that his wife’s grandparents — Philip and Wilma Buck — were homesteaders in Creston and graduates of Flathead County High School.

Flatau’s quest to move from the foothills of the Cascade Mountains to the Flathead Valley is driven in part by his love of the outdoors. He enjoys hiking, fly-fishing, hunting and biking.

“My dad and I, our connection was fishing and hunting,” Flatau said. “Through fishing and hunting I learned great respect for the outdoors.”

While Flatau is described as having an excellent understanding of school budgets, levy campaigns, grantwriting and management, he is often noted as an enthusiastic, supportive and collaborative leader who works hard to ensure that children receive the best educational opportunities.

If a contract is finalized, Flatau plans to hit the ground running. He has already drafted an entry plan that covers a year of learning the goals and challenges of district stakeholders.

Flatau said his vision for Kalispell Public Schools is the same one he’s had at Cle Elum-Roslyn.

“My vision is to have a highly efficient, highly effective school district that a community can be proud of and that graduates highly skilled students that are prepared for college and a career,” Flatau said. “The details are always the challenge. I think it would be arrogant of me sitting here in Cle Elum to say ‘This is what we should do.’ My first year is going to be a huge learning curve.”

His vision also includes a community that has confidence and trust in its school district.

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 758-4431 or by email at hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.